CAL NOTEBOOK / Holmoe keeps his distance from Mendenhall's team

2005-12-22 04:00:00 PDT Las Vegas -- Tom Holmoe, the athletic director at BYU and former coach at Cal, might have the job he always wanted, but he admits he misses coaching.

He said his office in Provo, Utah, looks down on the Cougars' practice field.

"I find myself with the binoculars watching practice," he said. "I try not to go down too much. I could be a distraction and it might appear that I'm looking over his (coach Bronco Mendenhall's) shoulder."

In his first year as head coach, Mendenhall is bringing the Cougars to a bowl game for the first time in three years, and he's returning the program to its former integrity after off-field scandals involving alcohol and sexual assault.

"I'm not as involved as I could be," Holmoe said, "and that's probably a good sign. They run the program like our school wants it run."

Holmoe coached at Cal for five years, going 12-43 (four of those 43 losses initially were wins, but later were forfeited).

Mendenhall, who replaced Gary Crowton after three losing seasons, said that when Holmoe hired him, the AD didn't give him a mandate. Holmoe didn't have to do so.

"At BYU, the off-field conduct was much more damaging than the three losing seasons," Mendenhall said. "We represent an institution and a faith (the Mormon church) first."

Sellout: There are no more tickets available for tonight's game at 40,000-seat Sam Boyd Stadium. Both schools easily sold their allotment of 8,000 tickets.

Bowl officials say many more tickets were bought by BYU fans in Las Vegas (the city has a large Mormon community) and they expect a 3-to-1 ratio in favor of the Cougars.

That's just fine with Cal rover Donnie McCleskey, who said the team thrives in a hostile environment.

"We're going to hear the boos that get us going; we're going to hear the cheers that keep us going," he said.